According to a study from business writing trainer BackDraft, technology firm employees are increasingly expected to be able to write. But many IT professionals lack the skills required.
The study of more than 2,700 workers in the U.S. and Canada showed that the average IT pro spends over a third of their workday writing, a 33 per cent spike in writing activity over the last five years.
BackDraft said this is not surprising, given the complex nature of technology. That means that employees have to be clear communicators in order to make sure potential customers understand the value they offer. Technology can also be very broadly targeted, which means that a lot of the internal jargon used in the industry has to be filtered out so that a wider audience can grasp the material.
“Electronic communication has matured, and technology professionals are more dependant than ever on writing to effectively communicate with customers, partners, employees and each other,” said Brian Hanington, CEO of BackDraft. “As the workforce increasingly interacts using technologies such as email, instant messaging and blogs, weak writing is negatively impacting productivity. Technology professionals who can significantly maximize the effectiveness of their communications through strong writing have an immediate edge over competitors.”
Although the demand for writing may be increasing, two recent reports show that more than one-third of U.S. IT professionals lack adequate writing skills. E-mail is, of course, the number one place where people are writing, accounting for more than two hours of the average worker’s workday. But it’s also the source of bad habits such as excessive jargon and unprofessional contractions and colloquialisms.
And that’s bad news for those who can’t write. According to a report from the National Writing Commission in the U.S., “writing is a ticket to professional opportunity, while poorly written job applications are a figurative kiss of death,” and “writing ability is now a core requirement for advancement.”
-Robert Dutt
